Newport has reportedly missed out on around £3m of investment after a university merger and the closure of a campus.
Tory councillor Matthew Evans has claimed that student numbers in the city have drastically fallen over the past 15 years and criticised what he termed as “broken” promises to invest in higher education.
The University of South Wales (USW) was established in 2013 when the University of Newport merged with the University of Glamorgan, two years after a new city centre campus for business and media was inaugurated in Usk Way.
Despite opposition, the Caerleon campus was shut down in 2016. Most of the site has since been redeveloped into housing, with the exception of the main block and some other listed buildings. USW says it is “committed to providing our students, colleagues, and partners with the very best experience at our Newport campus”.
At a council meeting, Cllr Evans, who leads the opposition Conservative group, alleged that the only university students living in Newport were “a few from Bristol”. Students live in a block of flats at Usk Way.
In 2022, we spoke to students who attended university in the west of England who were surprised to have ended up in student halls in Newport.
It is a stark contrast to the 10,000 students the councillor claims the city hosted in 2010-11. Cllr Evans highlighted a claim that “when the Caerleon campus was sold for £6.2m, there was an initial promise that all of this would be spent in the city”.
Regarding the university merger, he said: “Promises were made that there would not be any campus closures, which were then broken.”
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The envisioned Knowledge Quarter in central Newport was supposed to ensure the future of higher and further education yet Cllr Evans questioned what has been achieved so far and called on Cllr Dimitri Batrouni, the council leader, to “ensure that this much-needed investment in the city centre materialises”.
Cllr Batrouni acknowledged having “honest and robust” conversations with USW about the institution’s “current status and future” in Newport, but pointed out that the sector is “in real trouble”. He said: “I think if we’re all being candid with each other, not just in Wales but across England, higher education [and] universities are facing a financial crisis.”
Cllr Evans referred to public documents from the time of the Caerleon campus redevelopment decision indicating “the university intended to reinvest proceeds into the Newport Knowledge Quarter”.
“Once more it seems we’ve been left behind,” he said. “Apparently they have spent £3.2m in Newport, but that still leaves a shortfall of £3m.”
Cllr Batrouni championed the Knowledge Quarter project as “a beacon for this city” and confirmed there were “definitely students there” during his recent visit to the city centre campus. He highlighted several USW investments in Newport, including a “state-of-the-art” research and innovation centre and a cyber centre, “which has won four national awards for cyber excellence, beating all the Russell Group universities”.
“I always want more. I always ask them for more, and you know if I can get more there, I will,” Cllr Batrouni said, though he cautioned that he could not “sit here and promise” anything because the pandemic had “decimated” higher education.
A USW spokesman said: “Building on the fantastic foundations that we have at the campus for our provision and facilities we have undertaken a multi-million-pound project to enhance our internal spaces for our learners, colleagues, and partners including modern flexible learning and working environments, an enterprise hub, and a Hydra suite using world-renowned technology.
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“We are continuing to develop our partnerships and connections within the city, and region so we offer an inclusive environment for learning, innovation, and professional practice.
“This includes working with local businesses and community groups, offering access to our spaces and professional support and advice, as well as having strategic partnerships with organisations and businesses across the area.”